Iran goes on censorship blitz

Nine lifestyle, cinema magazines targeted

BAGHDAD — Iran’s censors have launched a blitz on lifestyle and cinema magazines, slapping bans on nine publications for carrying pictures of “corrupt” foreign film stars and stories on their “decadent” private lives.

Student news agency ISNA quoted the press commission watchdog as saying the magazines were banned this week for “publishing photographs of corrupt foreign artists and details about their decadent lives.”

They were also “publishing advertising for forbidden medicines and articles that were contrary to morality and offensive to the ethnic minorities,” the commission said.

Among the magazines hit by the ban are Donya-ye Tasvir (World of the Image), Sobh-e Zendegi (Morning of Life), Talash (Effort) and Haft (Seven).

Thirteen other publications were served warnings.

The magazines affected regularly print articles and pictures of foreign film stars and of Iranian actresses wearing loose headscarves and tight-fitting clothes.

The latest edition of Donya-ye Tasvir carries articles and pictures about Hollywood female stars including Reese Witherspoon and Nicole Kidman.

Few foreign movies are screened in Tehran, and those that do make it to the bigscreen are subject to heavy censorship, especially of scenes in which actresses are skimpily dressed.

This does not prevent myriad glossy magazines from following the Hollywood gossip and carrying stories of the private lives of stars.

Many arthouse films fail to win a license to be screened in Iran as they are deemed to fall short of Islamic cultural standards.

After enjoying a boom in the early years of the rule of reformist President Mohammad Khatami, dozens of magazines and newspapers have been banned in recent years.